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FOTP Newsletter
As we wind down towards the end of the year, the Tokai-Cecilia Management Framework Review Process is only just revving up, and our Spring Surveys are in full swing! Please do sign up for our surveys and come along -read more about the details in our newsletter. Our Spring Walk was a great success, and our Night Walk was rained out, but is rescheduled for 4 November.
In global news, the Kunming Declaration was adopted at COP15, which is a win for biodiversity since we didn't achieve the Aichi Targets by 2020. You can read about the new declaration here. We hope COP26 will accelerate action towards the goals of the Paris Agreement and the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change .
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Our spring walk 2021 was a great success! Pictured here: Protea scolymocephala - Thistle Sugarbush (vulnerable). Photo credit: Heather Hodgson. More photos here.
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Events: FOTP Alien Plant Hacks
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Tuesday Hacks
2 November: 4-6pm (Note: change to summer time)
16 November: 4-6pm
30 November: 4-6pm
Saturday Hacks
13 November: 8-10am (Note: change to summer time)
Spring Surveys
Call for volunteers: Tokai’s annual veg survey is nearing, here are our plans. Surveys will happen weekly for 6 weeks (one site per week), and we need between 5-10 volunteers for each week. Volunteers can complete the doodle calendar (click here) to reserve their spot, or email s.govender@sanbi.org.za.
Surveys Dates: November: 4, 11, 17, 23; December: 1
Time: 9am-12pm
Meeting location: Tokai Picnic Site parking area
Bring: Camera and GPS or smartphone with iNaturalist loaded and sufficient battery and memory, sturdy boots, long pants, and appropriate gear for the weather, water/tea and snacks.
Procedure: We will drive to the start, and proceed from level 1 up through the veld in a group about 20-50m apart to level 5 (300m altitude), meet at the top for tea, and repeat the process down in a new transect to level 1 and the cars. At each level we will start again to record all plants and animals we encounter.
Please note that Covid-19 Regulations will apply to our events (see box below).
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FOTP Covid19 Regulations
- Please do not attend our hacks if you are feeling unwell, or have any of the recognized Covid19 symptoms, are medically compromised with regards to the virus, or have been in contact with an infected person in the past 14 days.
- Please take your temperature yourself before coming on the hack, and only attend if your temperature is normal.
- Face masks must be worn at all times.
- Social distancing of 2m must be maintained at all times.
- Wash hands and all tools before coming. Any tools shared on site must be wiped down with wet disinfected cloth before handed back to owner.
- Bring your own refreshments and do not share.
- Teams no larger than 10 participants. For more than 10 participants we will divide into different teams working in different Blocks.
- On arrival, everyone will be screened for any obvious symptoms, and a register of all participants and their e-mail contacts will be kept.
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FOTP and partners doing active restoration at Tokai Park on a rainy day in July (Photo: Zoe Poulsen)
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To all WESSA Western Cape and Northern Cape Friends and Affiliates, you are invited to attend this event. If you are interested, please email
friendsofjackmullerpark@gmail.com to book your spot. |
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The Friends of Tokai Park (FOTP) are being represented on the Table Mountain National Park (TMNP) Forum by Dr Alanna Rebelo. This forum has three sub-committees, and FOTP sits on the "Maintenance & Permits" subcommittee. Please feel free to reach out to us if you have any issues you want raised there.
The process has been much contested, with Take Back Our Mountain (TBOM) boycotting the process and FOTP have also had serious complaints about the process which to date have been ignored. There is a lot of internal conflict and unless resolved, legitimacy will be hard to establish. We will continue to monitor this process and keep you updated. At this stage nothing has happened on this front since writing this in early October 2021.
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News: Update on the TCMF Process
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The Tokai Ceclilia Management Framework (TCMF) Review Process Phase 2 (focused workshops) is under way. It is due to be concluded by the end of November 2021. Phase 2 is called: " What It Looks Like When It’s Fixed". SANParks says: " This phase is informed by knowledge gathered in the first phase. The process will consist of in-person and virtual workshops and task team meetings. The first phase has taught us that there is a shared will to do the best for these extraordinarily environmentally diverse and valued areas, for the people who love and use them and for the global heritage and legacy of our beloved mountain."
Stakeholders have organised themselves into six working groups covering the key themes/topics forming part of the review process, and SANParks are trying to establish a 7th. Please contact the relevant convener or co-convener of the working group if you would like to join in (in brackets). Stakeholders (i.e. anyone with an interest) may join at any time. Friends of Tokai Park are represented in most of the working groups ( in green: note that this is not an exhaustive list of FOTP participation). Meetings are typically hybrid at this stage, i.e. in person and virtual.
1. Recreation (Nicky Schmidt; Howard Hendricks) -Alanna Rebelo
2. Communications (Anthony Albert; Lauren Clayton)
3. Fire Management (Gordon Chunnett; Chad Cheney) -Patricia Holmes
4. Facilities/ Development opportunities (Stephen Floyd; Frans Van Rooyen)
5. History and cultural heritage ( Berta van Rooyen; Wendy Johnson)
6. Biodiversity (Charmaine Oxtoby; Marna Herbst) -Tony Rebelo
7. Safety and Security (in progress)
You can download a copy of the Friends of Tokai Park's statement here and read a summary of our vision below. |
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Planning a Park for All – Together
Biodiversity • Community • Heritage • Safety
The Friends of Tokai Park have a vision for Tokai Park where humans and nature can live in harmony.
"The restoration and conservation of biodiversity is inclusive, not exclusive, and is entirely compatible with our heritage and recreational activities"
Our goal is to conserve our natural plant and animal life at Tokai Park while promoting the park as a recreational gateway to our greatest natural asset and internationally-renowned World Heritage Site, Table Mountain National Park.
We envisage a park reflecting the symbiotic relationship between the plants and animals that call Tokai Park home and members of the diverse community that use it for many and varied types of recreation, including walking, running, cycling, dog-walking and/or horse riding.
To have a closer look at our vision mapped out (below) and to learn more about our vision, click here: https://tokaipark.com/about-us/vision/.
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Would you like to get involved in the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration? Are you not able to volunteer time to join in our hacks, but really appreciate the work we are doing? If yes, please consider making a donation to one of our five programmes. We have almost reached 50% of our target!
Programme 1: Alien Hacking - We need equipment for our volunteers to use, such as loppers, chainsaw blades, fuel etc. Target: R3000 -> Raised R250
Programme 2: Active Restoration - We need special funding for alien clearing work in Block A9 (Prinskasteel) and A7 (Paintball), as well as growing plants for active rehabilitation. Target: R10 000 -> Target achieved!
Programme 3: Restoration Trail - The restoration trail is in need of a make-over. We need funding for signage refreshment, as well as to fix the boardwalk. Target: R5000 -> Target achieved!
Programme 4: Tokai Arboretum - We need funding for maintenance of paths, buildings, and the gardens. Target: R10 000
Programme 5: Tokai Path Maintenance - We need funding to support path clearing as well as signage, which has become totally faded. Target: R5000
If you would like to make a donation, please feel free to use snapscan (below) our do a traditional EFT into our bank account. Please indicate which programme you would like to support by putting the programme number into the payment reference, as well as your name if you would like us to know who the donation is from (e.g. Smith_Prog1).
BANK DETAILS
Friends of Tokai Park
Standard Bank
Blue Route
Savings Account
27 629 2669
WESSA Affiliation: MB1240127
PBO Tax Exemption #: 930066728
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Use the buttons below to find our website or follow us on social media :)
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